Ranking all 32 NFL defenses heading into the 2018 season

Ranking all 32 NFL defenses heading into the 2018 season

Every team’s roster is essentially set after a busy NFL offseason. How do teams stack up going into 2018? That’s the question For The Win’s Steven Ruiz and Charles Curtis are here to answer. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be ranking all 32 teams into tiers — we rank them separately and combine the lists — in several categories. We start with the defenses …

Tier 1: Elite

1. Vikings
2. Jaguars
3. Eagles
4. Rams

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Steven Ruiz: Separating the Vikings and Jaguars was difficult, but in the end Minnesota was the pick because of the man drawing up the X’s and O’s, Mike Zimmer. The Jaguars, on the other hand, run a more simplified scheme, though they might have the most defensive talent in the league. You can’t go wrong with either team.

I expect the Eagles to be right there with the Jags and Vikes but their secondary isn’t nearly as good. And we still have to see this new-look Rams defense play together before anointing them.

Charles Curtis: We pretty much agreed on these four in our Tier 1 rankings, except Steven had the Ravens here and I had the Broncos, who I tried a million times to put in Tier 2. But visions of Bradley Chubb rushing passers with Von Miller danced through my head.

Tier 2: Very good

5. Ravens
6. Cardinals
7. Broncos
8. Chargers
9. Panthers
10. Bears

Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

Steven: I had the Ravens in my Tier 1 just based on that secondary alone, which might be the deepest in the league, if healthy. The Cardinals defense was a lot better a year ago than people realize and has plenty of room to grow with younger guys like Budda Baker and Hassan Riddick ready to break out. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Chargers end up playing like an elite defense this season with all that talent they have. I just want to see how good that secondary can be with Jason Verrett staying healthy. Make it happen, Football Gods.

Charles: I’m all-in on the Bears having a good season partially based on their sneaky-solid defense, so I’m happy we agreed here. Also: Does anyone else think the Cards are going to win eight games based on their defense and Josh Rosen or Sam Bradford at QB? When you look at our ranking here, the answer is yes.

Tier 3: Stout

Steven: I’m buying the hype for the 49ers’ young defense. There is talent at every level. The defensive line is loaded with high first-round picks, including DeForest Buckner, who is unblockable. Reuben Foster is a star at the linebacker position. And don’t sleep on the secondary. Adrian Colbert, Ahkello Witherspoon, Jimmy Ward and Jaquiski Tartt can all play at a high level.

I think we might be underrating the Packers here. They have a nasty d-line and spent a lot of resources on improving that secondary over the last two drafts. Mike Pettine could produce a top-10 unit with that talent.

Charles: I had the Niners here, simply because I feel like they’re a year away from gelling and heading right in to Tier 2 after those 2016-2017 drafts. I also wonder: Do we have the Saints too low after we discovered their defense was legit in 2017 (please hold your jokes about how their playoff game against the Vikings ended). And hey, the Browns! Believe it.

Tier 4: Concerning

22. Bengals
23. Seahawks
24. Buccaneers
25. Lions
26. Bills

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Steven: I had the Bengals, Seahawks and Buccaneers in my third tier, but Charles overruled me. The Bengals defense played well in the second half last season and I don’t see why that won’t continue going into 2018. The Seahawks lost a lot of talent, but Bobby Wagner and Earl Thomas are still here so they’ll be all right. And the Bucs have too much talent to not produce a decent defense — though I wouldn’t put anything past Mike Smith.

Charles: I’m more than happy to admit I had the Pats in Tier 4 for only one reason: Bill Belichick. Otherwise, they’ve got large holes on that side of the ball and the GOAT coach may not be able to fix them (see below). Also, I couldn’t bring myself to put the Bucs in Tier 3, they have a lot to prove this year after a busy offseason.

Tier 5: Problematic

Steven: The Patriots defense lacks talent, which is why it is this low, but I have no doubt Bill Belichick will get enough of it to produce another AFC East title. The Cowboys will outplay this ranking, especially if Sean Lee stays healthy all year and the young corners take the next step. The rest of these units will be as bad as we expect.

Charles: How the mighty have fallen in New England and Kansas City, which had a solid defense two years ago. And if I were Andrew Luck, I’d be crying in a large pile of money about the Colts’ defense. To say there’s work to be done is an understatement.

After dominating in 2017, does the Jags defense rank No. 1 heading into 2018?

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